Jump to content

It finally happened...


Birds of B'more

Recommended Posts

That's the problem. Maryland is not a program that needed to be rebuilt from scratch.

In fact, maybe that is Edsall's plan. Burn it to the ground first and start from scratch. Maybe he's only comfortable working that way.

Just a horrible hire. Not what the school needed at all.

I think absolutely his plan is to tear it down and build it back up.

Whether or not you think that was needed is a matter of opinion. But I do think that's where a lot of the disconnect between his supporters and detractors lies.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • Replies 133
  • Created
  • Last Reply

I remember UNC thinking John Bunting was a good hire for a while because we went to the Peach Bowl and beat Auburn his first year, even while using two QBs interchangeably. Yeah...not so much.

Isn't that what Edsall did for much of this season?

I think absolutely his plan is to tear it down and build it back up.

Whether or not you think that was needed is a matter of opinion. But I do think that's where a lot of the disconnect between his supporters and detractors lies.

Perhaps. When you are coming off a 9-4 season ranked in the Top 25 (for only the 4th time in almost 25 years), it's hard to make the case that you needed to tear down the program.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Perhaps. When you are coming off a 9-4 season ranked in the Top 25 (for only the 4th time in almost 25 years), it's hard to make the case that you needed to tear down the program.

Well, we've been down that road on this board recently as well.

I think most people probably had this pegged for a 6-7 win season. But if told those same people that DOB woud regress significantly, that Tate and Gonnella would miss most of the season, and that the rest of the defense would be ravaged with injuries, I doubt people would have predicted more than 3-4 wins.

We can debate where the program was until the cows come home and not get anywhere. But I think we can all agree that we're ready to forget about this year and hope for better years ahead.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

And it takes a person with a lot of hatred for Edsall to discount and undermine what he did with the program at UConn.

When Edsall took over they played at the football field on campus, Memorial Field. This also was their practice field. They had no weight rooms or training facilities; they had to use the student gym for training.

After 2002 season when they finally had an actually football stadium is when the program began an upward climb. They continually had one of the best RBs in the country (yardage wise) and one of the better defenses, statistically. YEs they played in a weaker conference but they were doing well going up against established programs.

How easily people forget that Louisville was a powerhouse when Petrino coached there and how good WVU was with Rich Rod. Pitt always has a solid team and Cinci was no slouch with Brian Kelly. USF has proven to be a solid team that has taken the same path as UConn with their short D-1 arrival.

Edsall took a program that was nothing. No real football stadium, training facilities, NOTHING. No support and no fan fare, for the most part. Because of where they were when he took over and what he made them into... He was able to secure donations and support to get one of the best football facilities in the country. Bill Belichick called it an NFL facility.

UConn football is comparable to the Rays in MLB. Yes the Rays sucked when they first became a team but the work and everythign the organization did during those 10 years of being awful led to them building an organization that is successful today.

UConn football is leaps and bounds better today than when Edsall took over. And the program is successful because of Edsall. His record is not indicative of the impact and job that he did at UConn.

Edsall obviously did a poor job this year and it's very understandable to be negative towards him, but anyone ignoring or diminishing the above is either letting their anti-Edsall bias get in the way or is just being foolish imo.

You can't ignore context when judging his results or comparing them to Fridge's.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

If it works, then it's what it needed.

If it doesn't start to work soon, fair or not, he will get fired. As has been pointed out, this isn't the same situation as UConn. He's not supposed to build a program at Maryland, he's supposed to take a successful-but-stagnant program and breathe some life into it.

Even if he came in and saw major structural problems at the foundation, you don't go tearing the building down. You let the fans know that there are problems and why you need to do what you are going to do. He is failing miserably there.

So how exactly are fans supposed to react? A popular coach is fired, and an essentially-unknown coach comes in with some success in his last program. That coach proceeds to take a nine-win team, turn them into a two-win team, alienate players including a popular quarterback, and not only fail to communicate his plans to the fans effectively, but at times go on the attack. Even the rational, logical fans see very little that is rational or logical to latch on to here.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Cant' believe I'd ever say BTerp just nailed it. Edsall has one more season to show a LOT of progress or he's gone.

Agreed. Edsall could have pointed out that there were issues with this team in a more diplomatic way. He basically threw Freidgen under the bus, along with a lot of the players that he brought in here.

A little humility could have gone a long way this season as well. You've got a contract, so take a little heat when things go wrong. There's nothing wrong with self-criticism, even if you are so arrogant as to think none of it is your fault.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

From a financial (and PR) perspective, can Maryland fire him? They are publicly announcing that their AD is in dire straits. They are cutting programs left and right. How can they fire this guy with 3+ years left on his contract and hire a new guy (who will undoubtedly make a hefty salary)? I'm fearing that - regardless of his ineptitude - they may be stuck with him for at least 3 more years.

Another question: This year has shown me that he's not an outstanding coach. Even if the talent level is low (which isn't his fault this year), he clearly has not maximized their ability. And, it's also clear to me that these players quit on him to some extent. BUT, how does his recruiting look going forward? Good recruiting can cure a lot of ills in college sports. Is he improving MD's outlook in football recruiting?

Link to comment
Share on other sites

He's not supposed to build a program at Maryland, he's supposed to take a successful-but-stagnant program and breathe some life into it.

According to who? Anderson? The fans? How do we know what the true motivation was for the hiring? I imagine there are probably some quotes from Anderson at the time, but I honestly don't remember them.

Even if he came in and saw major structural problems at the foundation, you don't go tearing the building down. You let the fans know that there are problems and why you need to do what you are going to do. He is failing miserably there.

Well, I can't agree with this metaphor at all. If you see "major structural problems at the foundation" of a structure, of course you need to tear the building down. Now, it certainly can be debated whether that was indeed the case at MD.

A popular coach is fired

Really? Ralph had his supporters for sure, but there were plenty of people ready to move on.

an essentially-unknown coach comes in with some success in his last program.

Anyone who didn't know who Randy Edsall was didn't follow college football. I think this sentence should instead be "a coach who wasn't Mike Leach"

alienate players including a popular quarterback

Is there any evidence that Danny O'Brien feels alienated? Again, I'm not saying there isn't, just that I haven't seen any.

, and not only fail to communicate his plans to the fans effectively, but at times go on the attack.

I agree that his communication with the fans has not been good, and is something that he needs to improve on.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Another question: This year has shown me that he's not an outstanding coach. Even if the talent level is low (which isn't his fault this year), he clearly has not maximized their ability. And, it's also clear to me that these players quit on him to some extent. BUT, how does his recruiting look going forward? Good recruiting can cure a lot of ills in college sports. Is he improving MD's outlook in football recruiting?

According to the rankings, his class for this coming year is lower than a typical Friedgen class. That is not surprising considering he hasn't been on the job for a full year yet. MD is technically still listed with some very high profile local recruits, but frankly I do not expect any of them to land here.

So I guess the best answer at this time would be underwhelming to date.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

A popular criticism of Edsall includes his "alienating" of DOB so to speak (not to just put this on you BTerp, since lots of people have been saying this). Yes, DOB had early success as a starter, but he was terrible this year. Personally, I don't care all that much if he feels alienated. You know who doesn't get alienated very often? A QB who plays well and makes good decisions. Why are we so worried that our mediocre QB might be upset at his lack of playing time?

Link to comment
Share on other sites

A popular criticism of Edsall includes his "alienating" of DOB so to speak (not to just put this on you BTerp, since lots of people have been saying this). Yes, DOB had early success as a starter, but he was terrible this year. Personally, I don't care all that much if he feels alienated. You know who doesn't get alienated very often? A QB who plays well and makes good decisions. Why are we so worried that our mediocre QB might be upset at his lack of playing time?

Maybe they shouldn't have used him as a read-option quarterback?

Link to comment
Share on other sites

As I said before, Maryland will soon find it's going to be cheaper to fire him and bring in someone better and more exciting and who isn't a walking middle finger to most everyone in College Park than it will be to let Edsall stay.

I am not disagree that it might very well be cheaper, but I am not optimistic that they will soon realize that fact. I do not see a new AD firing his first big name hire after one season.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Edsall's failures this year are well-documented. Let me just say this one last thing. Great coaches don't need to "tear down the building" in order to succeed. Did Urban Meyer tear down Florida? Did Nick Saban tear down Alabama? Did Les Miles tear down LSU? Did Bob Stoops tear down Oklahoma?

I've just never heard of a college coach having to burn a program to the ground in order to be successful. It sounds like a convenient excuse for abject failure to field a competitive football team.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Archived

This topic is now archived and is closed to further replies.


×
×
  • Create New...